The Imperial Coroner Episode 29 Recap
> The Imperial Coroner Recap
Earlier, Xiao Jinli had discovered that more than twenty soldiers had left the camp to procure supplies. In fact, they were acting on Wu Chen's orders, and this number happened to match the number of people who went to set fire to the prefectural office. Xiao Jinyu stated that there was another group among those who kidnapped Xu Rugui that day, and their intention was clearly to capture Xu Rugui alive.
Moreover, someone in the army had indeed led a team out. However, Wu Chen himself had no military power to speak of. Therefore, Xiao Jinyu believed that there was someone with greater military power behind Wu Chen. Chu Chu asked if it was Leng Peishan, but Xiao Jinyu did not dare to answer rashly. At this moment, Xiao Jinli came to report.
He stated that the soldiers who went out to procure supplies were led by Hou Bin, and these soldiers were actually bandits who had been recruited. The two then prepared to go to Hou Bin's residence, but just as they reached the entrance, Hou Bin suddenly went mad and stabbed himself to death with a knife. By the time Chu Chu and others entered the barracks, Hou Bin had already breathed his last.
Chu Chu needed to perform an autopsy as soon as possible, because Hou Bin's wounds were severe, and if they delayed any longer, the evidence might disappear. Because Chu Chu needed to perform a dissection, Hou Bin's subordinates strongly objected upon seeing this. General Leng came in and reprimanded everyone, forbidding anyone from obstructing, and dispatched two people to accompany Chu Chu for the autopsy.
Xiao Jinli felt remorseful because Hou Bin committed suicide, stating that if he had arrived a little faster, Hou Bin might not have died. Xiao Jinli casually picked up an arrow from Hou Bin's barracks, claiming that when he first joined the army back then, Hou Bin was hit by an arrow protecting him. Xiao Jinli had originally wanted to take one of the arrows, but Hou Bin kept it to warn Xiao Jinli.
Xiao Jinyu was curious why Hou Bin shouted 'child' when he died. Xiao Jinli then explained that Hou Bin once had a loving wife who died in childbirth, and this had always been Hou Bin's deep sorrow. Just as Xiao Jinyu was comforting Xiao Jinli, he suddenly noticed a jar Hou Bin used to keep dung beetles.
He smelled it and found the scent a bit strange, thus realizing that Hou Bin had festering sores, and most soldiers in the camp used this folk remedy for treatment. Not long after, Chu Chu had completed the autopsy. She found that Hou Bin, like other corpses, seemed to feel no pain when committing suicide, and his abdomen had also been completely disemboweled by him.
Because Chu Chu found this situation, Xiao Jinyu guessed that the previous few people all had festering sores and had used dung beetles for treatment. Although Chu Chu said some details were unclear, it could indeed be concluded that the deceased had been exposed to dung beetles before their death. Meanwhile, General Leng tied up Leng Yue because he did not want her to be involved in the military camp chaos.
Leng Yue furiously cursed her grandfather, calling him a traitorous official and a villain, accusing him of being consumed by ambition and disregarding the lives of the Leng clan. General Leng angrily declared that everything he did was for Leng Yue and the Leng clan. While the grandfather and granddaughter were arguing, Xiao Jinyu arrived with Chu Chu. Xiao Jinyu asked General Leng if he had met Feng Jie.
General Leng replied that because he perceived his remaining time was short, he did not wish to publicize the matter, so he told Feng Jie about it and asked him to report it to the Emperor. He had thought that Xue Rucheng's new appointment as Minister of War was for this matter, but unexpectedly, he left without even coming to the military camp.
Xiao Jinyu told Leng Peishan the facts he had deduced, and only then did Leng Yue realize that everything her grandfather did was for her. At this moment, Chu Chu noticed that the moxa sticks used by Leng Peishan were somewhat strange. Leng Yue smelled them and discovered that the moxa sticks contained cinnabar, which would produce poisonous gas when burned. General Leng stated that these moxa sticks were given to him by Wu Chen.
Sure enough, when everyone went to Wu Chen's room, they found it empty. Through this incident, Xiao Jinyu confirmed his guess: the poisoner was Wu Chen, who had put the poison in the dung beetle jars that everyone used. Xiao Jinli also investigated the family situations of several soldiers who committed suicide. These people were not present when the incidents occurred in their homes, so they all felt very guilty inside.
And the hallucinations they experienced after being poisoned were all related to their suppressed inner pain. Leng Peishan sent people to track down Wu Chen, who was eventually found dead in a well. Chu Chu's autopsy concluded that Wu Chen drowned, dying between the fourth and fifth watches last night. However, Xiao Jinyu suspected that this person might have been killed by someone else and asked Chu Chu to examine the body in detail.
At this time, Han Ji in the imperial court was very displeased with Xiao Jinyu and demanded that Emperor Xuanzong of Tang recall Xiao Jinyu to the palace for punishment. However, Emperor Xuanzong of Tang did not blindly comply but chose to wait and see.
